Wine Me Dine Me: Know Fish dinners teach how to eat sustainably

By Rachel Forrest

Thursday

May 4, 2017 at 6:37 AMMay 4, 2017 at 6:46 AM

Two upcoming dinners will help us all understand why catching fish sustainably matters and how we can help simply by eating certain fish, caught in specific ways. In this second round of Know Fish dinners, the first on May 9 at Franklin Oyster House in Portsmouth and the second on May 23 at Tinos Greek Kitchen in Hampton, you’ll learn about the provenance of the fish you’ll enjoy and meet the fishermen and oystermen who catch and cultivate our local seafood, thanks to educator and activist Colles Stowell.

By now, you might have heard some startling statistics from activists like Stowell and our local chefs. Ninety percent of all of the seafood consumed in the United States comes from outside the country. More than two-thirds of the seafood we eat is salmon, shrimp and canned tuna as well as tilapia which is largely farm-raised. There’s so much seafood to experience out there, yet we limit ourselves to only a few. We sometimes call the hundreds of species of fish we tend to ignore “Trash Fish,” but I prefer underutilized, underappreciated or underloved. When we create markets for these fish, we provide income for our local fishermen and help the community. There’s less pressure on the more popular fish as well, thus lessening overfishing. Instead of cod or haddock, try species like Atlantic pollock, redfish from Maine and dogfish. They’re so delicious. If you enjoyed some of the invasive green crab at our local restaurants recently, you helped our clam and mussel population. Look for more anchovies and sardines on our restaurant menus, too.

At these dinners, you’ll hear from Stowell about why and how he helps advocate for sustainable seafood and support his work. The proceeds for the dinners benefit his non-profit One Fish Foundation as well as the Chefs Collaborative Good Food Fund. Ask him about his work in middle and high school classrooms where he helps teach our kids to enjoy seafood and make more healthful, sustainable choices. Hear from fishermen like Capt. Tim Rider of New England Fishmongers about the huge effort he makes to fish with rod and reel, and learn from oystermen like Tim Henry from Bay Point Oyster Company. Our New Hampshire oysters are gaining a reputation as some of the best in the country.

And, all evangelizing aside, the team at Franklin Oyster House including Matt Decker and Matt Louis and the team at Tinos including executive chef Mark Segal will be cooking up a delicious meal. So get your tickets, now. Learn a few things and try out one of these recipes using those underloved fish.

Tickets for each dinner are $50 per person. Know Fish Dinner Series tickets are available at www.eventbrite.com/e/know-fish-a-dinner-series-tickets-32929029614

Learn more at:

One Fish Foundation

www.onefishfoundation.org

Chef's Collaborative Good Food Fund

www.chefscollaborative.org/good-food-fund/

Grilled Dogfish with Caponata

Cook this firm fish like you would cod or monkfish. It’s great for fish and chips or grilled this summer. With this recipe, you can simply substitute the vegetables that are in season at the farmers market.

Makes four

Ingredients

4 (6-ounce) dogfish fillets

1 small fennel bulb with stalks

2 1/2 T. olive oil

3 T. slivered almonds

2 c. (1/4-inch) diced peeled butternut squash

1 1/2 c. chopped onion

1 c. diced celery

5 garlic cloves, minced

1 poblano chile, diced (about 3/4 cup)

3 c. chopped tomato

2 T. sherry vinegar

1/4 t. salt, divided

1/2 c. chopped fresh cilantro or basil

2 T. fresh lemon juice

Remove fronds from fennel bulb and finely chop them. Finely chop inner leaves of bulb to until you have 3/4 cup.

Heat a large Dutch oven or skillet over medium-high heat. Add oil and coat bottom. Add almonds and sauté two minutes or until toasted. Add chopped fennel bulb, squash, and onion, celery, garlic and poblano. Cook for about 5 minutes. Add tomato, vinegar, and 1/8 teaspoon salt, then cook until squash is tender, stirring occasionally. Remove pan from heat. Cool, then stir in cilantro and lemon juice.

Preheat grill to medium-high heat. Sprinkle fillets with remaining 1/8 teaspoon salt. Add fillets to grill rack brushed with olive oil. Grill three minutes, then flip and grill 2 minutes or until done. Place 1 cup squash mixture on each of 4 plates, then top with fillets and sprinkle with chopped fennel fronds.

Sweet and Sour Sardines

Fry or broil these delicious little fish

Adapted from Saveur

Ingredients

1⁄2 c. white wine

1⁄4 c. raisins

2 lb. sardines, cleaned

Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste

3⁄4 c. olive oil

1 large white onion, sliced thin

1⁄3 c. white wine vinegar

1⁄4 c. pine nuts

Combine wine and raisins in a bowl. Soak for 30 minutes; drain, and set aside. Meanwhile, heat broiler to high. Season sardines with salt and pepper on a baking sheet. Broil, until cooked, about 2 minutes; cool.

Heat oil in a 4-qt. pan over medium-high heat. Add onion; cook until browned, 10 to 12 minutes. Add vinegar, reduce heat to medium-low, and cook until soft, 6–8 minutes. Stir in raisins, nuts, and salt and pepper; let cool. Place half the sardines on bottom of an 8″ x 8″ dish; cover with half the onion. Place remaining sardines on top; cover with onion. Marinate in refrigerator for four hours.

Rachel Forrest is a former restaurant owner who lives in Exeter (and Austin, Texas). She can be reached by email at rachel.forrest@localmediagroupinc.com. Read more of her Dining Out reviews online.

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